Alexandria University Faculty of Engineering Architecture Department

Architectural Education Reform in Egypt

Survey results on advanced technologies in architecture (Biological NanoArchitecture)
This survey was conducted in May/June 2013 among 100 architects and architecture students in several Egyptian and non-Egyptian universities and practices. The survey is part of my PhD thesis presented to the Graduate School of Faculty of Engineering at Alexandria University in Egypt. The survey was to measure their level of education and awareness on the advanced technologies in architecture, and Biological NanoArchitecture in particular. The survey was created in Arabic and in English, and was available for 60 days online through Google Drive free service and offline through my visits to different universities and architecture schools in Egypt. Questions in the survey were designed to harvest opinions of the responding students and architects on how to apply these technologies to our buildings in Egypt as well as their vision about the future of architecture and whether biological nanoarchitecture is included in this vision or not. No personal data was collected from the respondents except for the name of the university they have been to, and the graduation year (optional). The following table shows the criteria of the respondents:
The table shows the criteria of the respondents on the Advanced Technologies in Architecture survey.

Number and Percentage of unfamiliar respondents with Biological NanoArchitecture Number Percentage 25 28 3 6 25 8 19 16 4 100 64% 67% 75% 75% 78% 61% 60% 80% 60% 71%

Respondents from Alexandria University (Fine Arts, and Engineering) Respondents from Other Egyptian Universities Respondents from Other Arab Universities Respondents from non-Arab Universities Number of Undergraduates Number of Fresh Graduates (2010-2012) Number of Mid-Career/Senior Graduates (2009-2004) Number of Managers/Consultants (2002 & above) Respondents with Incomplete Data Total Number of Respondents
Biological NanoArchitecture Maged Elsamny

39 42 4 8 32 13 32 20 7

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Alexandria University Faculty of Engineering Architecture Department

1. Over 80 percent of the respondents are willing to live in biological buildings, with interactive biological materials that can respond to their behavior and probably feel them. While less than 20 percent rejected the idea for fear of losing control over these materials and opting for a peace of mind. Would you like to live in a house made of biological materials that can breathe, respond to your movement, and probably talk to you?

18%

Yes
82%

No Chart 01

2. Climate Change topped the results of the most pressing global problem out of the nine selected global issues that can be addressed with technology, followed by Urban Sprawling, Overpopulation, and the Spread of Disease.

In your opinion, select which of the following is a global problem that can be addressed with technology?
Climate Change Urban Sprawl Overpopulation
39 39 38 64

Spread of Disease
Financial Crisis Famine & Food Crisis Disabled Citizens Government Transparency Energy Crisis
0

24 2
1 1 1 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

Climate Change Spread of Disease Disabled Citizens

Urban Sprawl Financial Crisis Government Transparency

Overpopulation Famine & Food Crisis Energy Crisis

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Alexandria University Faculty of Engineering Architecture Department

3. Nanotechnology and Biotechnology are the most promising technologies for architects that will change the future of architecture Mention two technologies that will change architecture in the future

74
55 34 15

Biotechnology

Algorithms & Computation

Nanotechnology

CAD/CAM

Artificial Intelligence

According to 74 answers, architects and architecture students consider Nanotechnology as an enabling technology for the future of architecture.

Nanotechnology Biotechnology Algorithms & Computation CAD/CAM Artificial Intelligence 3D Printers BIM

4. Architecture education can be improved through introducing new technologies to students and architects. The answers display that the level of knowledge about Biological NanoArchitecture is very low among the respondents. This lack of knowledge is one of the biggest issues facing development in third world countries. Do you know Biological NanoArchitecture?

100 90

80
70 60 50

3D Printers

BIM

Yes No
71

40
30 20 10

29

71% of architects and architecture students are unfamiliar with Biological NanoArchitecture.

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Alexandria University Faculty of Engineering Architecture Department

5. Eighty-four percent of architects and students find it very important to introduce new subjects to the architecture curriculum at their universities. They say that their undergraduate education requires reforming and adding subjects to their courses will have a profound effect on their education. Do you think architecture students should study other subjects?

16%

Yes No
84%

Pie Chart shows that 84% of architects and architecture students who answered the survey consider adding new courses to undergraduate course is a necessity.

6. In your opinion describe in short, what are necessary measures that need to be addressed to integrate advanced technologies in our buildings in Egypt? In this question about the needed measures in Egypt to integrate advanced technologies in our buildings, I divided the answers into subjects and keywords, and gave them ranking according to the answers of each respondent. The following table shows each subjects and its ranking among other answers sorted by the number of replies:

Measures by keyword
Education Reform Provide more scholarships Capacity building to students Informal education Focus on youth, and school students Build new research laboratories Multidiscipline researches Integrate architecture with other sciences Introduce new materials to architecture Improve urban planning and build new cities Improve transportation patterns Provide public spaces and parks Improve public facilities
Biological NanoArchitecture Maged Elsamny

Points
52

Rank

26 2

25 3

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Alexandria University Faculty of Engineering Architecture Department

Improve Infrastructure Provide proper sanitation, energy, etc. Integrate new technologies with the infrastructure Architecture awareness Awareness to the public about architecture and technology Awareness to the government and officials Buildings operation and management Improve building microclimate to reduce energy and materials Adapt sustainable approaches in buildings Re-use of buildings Use new materials (nanomaterials, biomaterials, etc.) Reduce the carbon footprint on the environment

24 4

13 5

12 6

Change building codes and regulations 11 Add new materials to building codes (i.e. nanomaterials, biomaterials, etc.) Introduce new codes to future technological buildings Political reform Change government Educate the decision-makers and officials about new technologies Integrate architecture with various industries From lab to factory materials Mega projects to improve the economy 3

3 8

Recommendations: Rearranging the priorities of research topics in architecture schools towards finding effective solutions for these problems would greatly contribute to the development of architecture. The market demand for new materials and especially biological interactive materials is increasing rapidly. These new materials will contribute to the economy of developing countries like Egypt through building factories and laboratories to produce novel materials, as well as providing job opportunities to various disciplines. In addition to the health benefits and occupants amenity in buildings. In any country, education is one of the important factors for developing this country, however, it seems that many architects lack proper education in Egypt when asked a simple question about Biological NanoArchitecture, and even the positive answers were vague and distant from the topic. As a result, universities should provide the

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Alexandria University Faculty of Engineering Architecture Department

curriculum and the facilities to support these researches and avoid the technological gap between the contemporary and past paradigms. Material Science has become a necessity subject for undergraduate architecture students in order to comprehend the contemporary scientific fields and technologies. Introducing new subjects to undergraduate and postgraduate studies at architecture schools is highly recommended for a solid knowhow and capacity building of future architects in Egypt. This will result in improving the urbanity and providing a healthy environment, as architects are the key player at any society for developing the way the larger society lives. As per suggestions from the respondents, these are the most pressing subjects that are needed to be added to the curriculum of the undergraduate studies at our architecture schools: Course/Subject Material Science Chemistry Biology Business Administration Philosophy Politics Physics Geology Mechanics Psychology Environmental Science Computer Science Human Sciences Research Writing Economics Indigenous Architecture No. of Requests 40 16 16 10 3 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1

Table shows the number of requests per subject/course material required by respondents to be added to the architecture undergraduate courses.

Alexandria, September 2013. Thank you!

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